Final Corapi Update

by Steve Ray on July 8, 2011

Unless some big news happens, this will be my last post about Corapi. He’s become a rambling, broken, disobedient, lonely old man in a midlife crisis. In my estimation his collapse is no longer worthy news and of little interest. It is too sad to watch — like watching helplessly as a man refuses help while sinking into the mud of self denial and the slough of destruction.

In his latest video he exchanges a white priestly collar for a black leather Harley jacket. It is just too weird (who is his new publicist anyway?)

His black-dyed goatee, cocky demeanor and the ominous black dog face looming behind him will seal the deal — the loss of all his followers and fans save the most unstable “groupies.”

I feel especially pained for all those who have been stung by his hypocrisy and betrayal and those who in good faith tried to give the con artist the benefit of the doubt, trying to charitably live out the gospel.I pray for God’s healing and that they go own confidently in the Catholic faith — knowing it is not built on one man but on Jesus Christ and a solid foundation laid two thousand years ago!

The Catholic Church has never promoted “superstars” or the “cult of personality.’ She has rather promoted the quiet saint and the obedient servant. I praise God for those who rise up to preach boldly (Bishop Fulton Sheen, for example). We have many fine examples to emulate. One bad apple does not the bushel contaminate.

In the video it sounds as though he’s not only lost his priestly function and his sanity but his faith as well.

Unless something drastic changes, he has dwindled into oblivion and will be ignored by reasonable folks, including me. Pray for him? Yes! But pray more for the scandal he’s caused and the people he’s damaged. Evidence of his sad state can be seen in his latest video here, if you have five minutes to waste.

He thinks he only had 2 choices? Here is a third that, I reckon, didn’t occur to him: Obey the lawful orders of his superiors–even if he thought his superiors were wrong and being unjust–offer up his cross, and remember that this cross is a splinter from the Cross of Christ.

I was appalled by the SOLT PUBLIC statement. There is no way all those details need t be aired on the public forum. They do as much damage as anything Father Corapi has done. I was leaning toward your opinion until I read that statement from a religious order! It gave findings that they ccould not have finished from their 3 man committee as absolute truth. He was right – no way could he get a fair hearing. That lwtter belongs in “true Confession” (the sex magazine not a Catholic one) or as script on a daytime soap opera but never as a public statement from a religious order!

STEVE RAY HERE: Corapi is the one who pushed it into the public square. He forced their hand. They were right to make the announcement. Fr. Corapi has done the damage himself. He has been a deceiver all along and I am appalled that people are willing to still defend him. He is a con artist and is fading into oblivion because of his own actions, choices, immorality, lies, drugs and more.

Fr Corapi was shunned by his order a bogus claim and instead of sorting out the issue straight away they sidelined him indefinately. He is a great priest and has been let down hugely by his order.

If the matter was properly dealt with by his order none of this would have happened. We should be supporting him not referring to him as a con artist. That is below the belt Steve.

STEVE RAY HERE: No, he let down his Order and everyone else. He has been living a double life and is a sick man. He’s now saying Good-bye to Mary and the Church and re-defining himself like a chameleon which is more obvious as the info comes out and his reaction is observed. Why defend a rebellious priest and condemn a good bishop and his order? Too many Corapians who will blindly follow him wherever he goes. not saying you are but wow, I’m amazed how blindly loyal some are even in the face of the obvious.

Never judge another until you walk a mile in their shoes. I hail from a small, upscale, Northern New Jersey parish and will say that things are not always as they seem. Unless one has been subjected to this type of public castigation and vocational humiliation, they are in no position to opine as to the reaction of another.

When our half-century pastor was replaced after retiring, many parishioners simply refused to accept change. Not only did they not give the new pastor a chance, they vilified him, reporting all sorts of baseless allegations to the archdiocese in order to have him removed. They foolishly thought that this would bring the former pastor out of retirement, which it did not, but it did bring the new pastor on the verge of a nervous breakdown in the advent of betrayal by what was supposed to be a “Catholic community of faith.”

Edmund Coakley. This abusive brother had accurate complaints lodged against him regarding abuse of young boys – complaints that fell upon deaf ears until a young boy took his life and implicated Coakley on his death bed. The brothers were spirited to Arizona that night, and Coakley never held to account for his actions. Many referred to the transferring bishop as a “good bishop” as well. Like I said, matters are often times not as they appear to be.

If in one small parish an innocent priest can appear to be guilty while a guilty brother protected as innocent, how can any of you say with certainty that Father Corapi is guilty of anything, absent bearing direct witness which most certainly is not the case? It has been repeated that the woman behind these allegations was disgruntled upon losing her job and physically assaulted a Santa Cruz Media employee after which she vowed to destroy John Corapi.

So, we are to condemn John Corapi as having led a “double life” and deem him to be a “sick” man, based upon the allegations of a woman of dubious credibility? Much in the same manner as the archdiocese ignored the complaints about Edmund Coakley, this “good bishop” and his order may very well be electing to give undeserved credence to this unstable woman, simply because it advances their objective.

Obvious? Hardly. Obvious was what Edmund Coakley was doing to young boys in the 60’s and 70’s. Yet in the face of the obvious in that instance, the obvious was ignored. I can’t imagine how Father Corapi must feel but I can understand how it would rock the foundations of his mental and emotional state. His reaction should be understood and not judged.

Billy HW, your post is like a cry and this is the kind of thing that disturbs me the most. What are we supposed to believe? I think we are supposed to believe in the Most Holy Trinity, the Mother of God and the saints. I think we are supposed to believe in the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ for us. I think we are supposed to believe in a Church that is full of light and good things, in which individuals, nevertheless, sin. I think we are supposed to understand that we are all sinners and sometimes the consequences of our sin reaches epic proportions. For example, if we did not seek “superstars” to follow, there would be no problem when they have trouble. It is not necessary for us, as individuals, to come to any clear conclusion about Father Corapi, though I guess we can if we are so minded, but no one has placed me on a jury or made me a judge or lawyer. If there was ever a time to fix our minds on the things of God, not focusing on the things of the flesh, it’s now. God’s Peace and Blessings to all.

STEVE RAY COMMENTING ON THE COMBOX POST BELOW. CAPS ARE NOT YELLING. I USE CAPS TO DISTINGUISH MY TEXT FROM CRAIGS:

Hi Steve,
You say “No, he let down his Order and everyone else.” but you don’t say how.
HE WALKED AWAY WHEN THE GOING GOT TOUGH. ACTUALLY HE WALKED AWAY AND FILED LAWSUITS TO KEEP HIS DUPLICITY AND SIN FROM BEING EXPOSED.
Craig: I say they let him down by not sorting this mess out.
THEY WERE ALREADY WELL ALONG IN SORTING IT OUT AND HE STOPPED THE PROCESS BY RESIGNING, LONG BEFORE HE ACTUALLY ANNOUNCED IT, BY LAWSUITS. THERE WERE THREE INVESTIGATORS WHO HAD ALREADY DUG UP THE DIRT AND HE DID WHAT HE HAD TO DO TO STOP THE INVESTIGATION. HE RESIGNED BEFORE THEY SORTED IT OUT TO AVOID THE CONSEQUENCES.

Craig: You say “He has been living a double life and is a sick man.” but i say you can only say that if you agree with the allegations of 1 person who we understand is an alcoholic and a disgruntled employee.
IT IS NOT ONE PERSON, BUT A INVESTIGATIVE TEAM WHO WERE DOING INVESTIGATION AND PROVING THAT THAT SOLT AND THE BISHOP PULLED CORAPI OUT OF MINISTRY FOR VERY GOOD REASON. I POSTED A LINK ON MY BLOG ENTITLED “WHY I BELIEVE THE BISHOP AND SOLT”. I SUGGEST YOU READ IT.

Craig: No one else has come forward with similar allegations.
THEY HAVE ALL BEEN PAID OFF AND HAD TO SIGN AGREEMENTS TO KEEP THEIR MOUTH SHUT. CORAPI’S OWN ACTIONS AND CHANGE IS LIFESTYLE IS BEGINNING TO CORROBORATE THE FINDINGS.

Craig: You say “He’s now saying Good-bye to Mary and the Church” but Fr Corapi has repeatedly stated that he is not leaving the church.
DON’T BE FOOLED. WHERE IS HIS TALK OF MARY, THE SACRAMENTS AND OUR LORD. HE IS A DIFFERENT MAN WITH A DIFFERENT MESSAGE. LISTEN TO HIM AND BE OBSERVANT.

Craig: This situation is a mess and could have been avoided.
YES, IT COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED FIRST BY HIM STICKING WITH HIS MORAL REQUIREMENTS, LIVING IN COMMUNITY, AND BEING OBEDIENT. SECOND IT COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED IF HE HAD SUBMITTED TO HIS ORDER AND BISHOP AS OTHERS HAVE IN THE PAST. INSTEAD HE DOES THE OPPOSITE – CRITICIZES HIS SPIRITUAL SUPERIOR AND EVEN THE BISHOP. AND PEOPLE LIKE YOU ARE QUITE WILLING TO DEFEND THE PRIEST BUT THINK IT OK TO CRITICIZE THE BISHOP.

Craig: I am close to a priest who was falsely accused of sexual crimes and it did terrible damage to his health and reputation. The newspaper who reported these false allegations is now being sued for defamation but you can never undo the damage when this happens. Our bishop stuck by him and did everything he could to help.
IT IS SAD WHEN A PRIEST IS FALSELY ACCUSED. THAT IS NOT THE CASE HERE I AM QUITE SURE. AND HERE THE BISHOP IS THE ONE INVOLVED IN THE ACCUSATION/INVESTIGATION BECAUSE THEY KNOW MORE THAN HAS BEEN REVEALED. HERE WE NEED TO SUPPORT THE BISHOP UNTIL MORE IS KNOWN.
SORRY WE DISAGREE SO MUCH ON THIS BUT CORAPI HAS TAKEN EVERY WRONG TURN POSSIBLE AND LOST HIS FANS BECAUSE HE HAS BEEN DISOBEDIENT AND NOT WILLING TO SUBMIT TO THE CHURCH. ONLY THOSE WHO ARE BLIND LOYALISTS WILL FOLLOW HIM AT THIS POINT AND I FEEL SORRY FOR THEM.

I personally suspect that some (or possibly all) of the allegations levelled against him are false and merely an attempt at character assassination by a former disgruntled employee. However, my opinion….and yours, Steve…..are irrelevant. What matters is the truth. I may be inclined to give Fr.Corapi the benefit of the doubt, but regardless, I want to know the truth.

STEVE RAY HERE IN CAPS: FIRST THANKS FOR WRITING AND YOU OPINION, BUT OUR OPINIONS ARE *NOT* IRRELEVANT IF BASED ON CREDIBLE INFORMATION. YOU ARE WILLING TO CHARGE THE GOOD BISHOP WITH DECEIT WHILE DEFENDING A PRIEST WHO WAS QUICK TO ABANDON THE PRIESTHOOD AND WHO TOOK QUICK ACTION TO SQUELCH THE INVESTIGATION. WHAT IS HE AFRAID OF?

One can be honest, objective and charitable. You seem to be lacking charity Steve.

I DON’T WANT TO BE COMBATIVE BUT I WILL BE HONEST. CORAPIANS HAVE BEEN MERCILESS AND NAIVE AND I WILL BE STRONG IN RESPONSE.

YOU ARE NOW JUDGING ME! HUM? NO LACK OF CHARITY WITH ME. CHARITY IS NOT EQUAL TO *NICE* BUT SOMETIMES HONEST AND TOUGH. SILLY MUSHY-NESS IS NOT CHARITY. PEOPLE ENABLING A DISOBEDIENT PRIEST NEED TO HAVE THEIR HEADS EXAMINED. SORRY BUT I AM CONVINCED THAT IS THE CASE AND IM SURE THE FUTURE WILL BEAR THAT OUT.

Out of curiousity, have you ever been the victim of character assassination?

ANYONE WHO STICKS THEIR NECK OUT TO DEFEND THE CHURCH HAS BEEN FALSELY ACCUSED. IVE BEEN ACCUSED MORE BY *CORAPIANS* THAN BY ANYONE ELSE LATELY BUT NOT SURE WHAT THAT HAS TO DO WITH ANYTHING.

@ Steve Ray: Steve, we LOVE your work, your passion, and your zeal for the Faith!! BUT, if you ever went ‘off the reservation’ like Fr. Corapi did, I’d hope we’d all drop you like a bad habit. JUST LIKE WE SHOULD DROP “FR” CORAPI. I continue to pray for all priests and all sinners, but to continue to try and support what Fr. Corapi has become is just plain dumb.

“Unless something drastic changes, he has dwindled into oblivion and will be ignored by reasonable folks, including me. Pray for him? Yes! But pray more for the scandal he’s caused and the people he’s damaged. Evidence of his sad state can be seen in his latest video…if you have five minutes to waste.”

Yes, a train wreck for certain. Thanks for the great article, and “warning” to Catholics. Should anyone like to talk with others who have been hurt by this case, (and praying and crying for a last second “Hail Mary” toss) please stop by Crying for Corapi, a FB page administrated by myself, Christine Harrington, and Tom O’Toole (aka Fighting Irish Thomas).